


Setting Sail, Coming Home

by hakkais_shadow



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Steampunk, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-22
Updated: 2019-05-01
Packaged: 2019-11-27 13:00:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18194915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hakkais_shadow/pseuds/hakkais_shadow
Summary: Son Hyunwoo, Captain of the Rusty Phoenix, did not accept passengers. Not after the accident.For Yoo Kihyun, he made an exception. He hoped he wouldn't regret it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [katamari](https://archiveofourown.org/users/katamari/gifts).



> To katamari - I am so sorry that this isn't complete yet. This is the first time I haven't completely finished a challenge fic in the time allotted but I've been hit with more than a dozen curveballs these past few months. I promise this will be continued - I know have a personal vested interest in this world and its characters. I hope you enjoy what I have written so far, meager as it is.
> 
> I envision the world as a combination of steampunk and perhaps early space exploration - take that as you will.
> 
> Music prompt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDflVhOpS4E / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__dmuhTyCEU / http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaIo82uT0qs

“No.”

 

It was said simply and quietly, very little inflection in the single word. However, Yoo Kihyun knew that those two letters held a depth of feeling in the man who sat oppose him in the crowded pub. Even with the cacophony of noises around him there was a stillness surrounding the man.

 

“Hyunwoo…” he tried, only to be cut off, this time more firmly.

 

“I don’t take passengers. You know this, Kihyun….and you know why.”

 

Yes, Kihyun knew. The inventor and self-proclaimed alchemist had been witness to the accident, had crafted the mechanized brass arm that was attached to Captain Son Hyunwoo’s right shoulder - and had seen the stoic man in front of him fall apart when he realized that his sacrifice had shattered any chance at his dream. After all, Her Majesty’s Royal Fleet didn’t accept into their leadership those with physical flaws.

 

It was a pity, really. Son Hyunwoo was a beautiful man, both inside and out.  Tall and broad-shouldered, his frame was well-muscled but not obnoxiously so, the sign of years of hard work and dedication and not the artificial body modification that had become so popular over the past decade.

 

(And Kihyun would be more than happy to admit that he had more than a few daydreams about that body. He was human, after all.)

 

After the accident he had tried to make the artificial arm as realistic as possible to match the rest of Hyunwoo but it _had_ been a prototype after all. Gears and metal - strong as they were -  couldn’t make up for muscle and hard-earned calluses. Kihyun resolved to make a limb that would suit his friend’s physical stature. His modifications through the years had gifted Hyunwoo with an arm that was strong and agile, an asset to his work but it still wasn’t _real_.

 

But Son Hyunwoo never complained about it. Not once.

 

It wasn’t only the older man’s physical appearance that impressed Kihyun. The Captain of the Rusty Phoenix was a good man in a world where goodness wasn’t necessarily desired or respected. The son of farmers, Hyunwoo’s eyes had been turned towards the sky since the first day he had seen an airship not long after he turned 8. Stowing away on the Phoenix when he was 12, the boy had been taken under the then-Captain’s wing, the surprisingly kind man’s actions helping shape what kind of Captain - and man - Hyunwoo was today. He had a crew who, while small, would defend him to the death. He treated them with respect and took their thoughts and concerns under consideration - it was just the kind of man he was.

 

_Perhaps Hyunwoo’s attractiveness was what inspired me_ …..well, that was a story for another day. One that the Captain apparently didn’t want to listen to at that moment.

 

He hated to do this, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

 

“Hyunwoo…..just this once? As a favor to me?”

 

The shift in the Captain’s expression, that slight flicker of guilt, was all Kihyun needed to see to know he had won.

 

A sigh.

 

“Who?”

 

“My assistant, Hoseok. I need you to take him to New Seoul.”

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

And here Hyunwoo was, one week after that fated conversation, waiting for his new - and only - passenger. Kihyun had said this Hoseok would be punctual and he’d be damned if he would wait a minute after the designated time.

 

“Not a second more,” he murmured to his ship as he ran the fingers of his good hand along her tarnished brass hull. The Rusty Phoenix wasn’t a pretty airship and had seen better days but she was sturdy and flightworthy - something the Captain saw to himself before each and every flight. She wasn’t yet fitted for Hyperdrive but Jooheon had promised  he was close.

 

His father had always said that _close_ only counted in horseshoes and hand grenades.

 

_Perhaps she takes after her Captain_ , Hyunwoo mused to himself. _Not quite whole but still functional_.

 

“A pretty package isn’t everything, is it, old girl?” he crooned to his pride and joy and he always imagined that if the ship were sentient then she’d answer him with a saucy “yes, Captain.”

 

“Captain?”

 

It was as if he could hear her voice right now...but it was a bit lower in his imagination than it had been before (it had always sounded like a combination of his mother and a girl he’d admired from afar so many years ago…)

 

“Captain Son Hyunwoo?”

 

Hyunwoo startled out of his reverie as reality hit him, the new voice very real...and very _male_. He straightened up and turned, hiding any hint of vulnerability beneath a stern yet approachable facade.

 

“Yes?”

 

He was greeted by a bright smile and an outstretched hand. “I’m Hoseok, Dr. Yoo’s assistant. I hope I didn’t keep you waiting.”

 

Hyunwoo studied the man. Hoseok was shorter than the Captain (most were) but well-built, his waistcoat clean and his nails trimmed. He had a face that would make any girl’s heart flutter, smile broad and friendly.

 

A smile that flickered as his outstretched hand remained untouched. 

 

Cursing himself for his lack of manners Hyunwoo reached out with this right hand by instinct, then began to retract it with a muttered apology. _You would think that after so many years you would learn, Hyunwoo. No one wants to be reminded that you have this.._

 

However, much to his surprise the other man took the mechanical hand in a firm grip, as if it was flesh and not finely wrought brass kept as spotless as its owner could make it. There was no indication that Hoseok even considered hesitating (like so many others had - it was why Hyunwoo usually offered his left hand in greeting). “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Captain. Dr Yoo has told me so much about you. I really appreciate this...he wants me in New Seoul as soon as possible and he knows how fast The Rusty Phoenix is. He says you are the best in the business.”

 

The comment made Hyunwoo smile and shake his head, the ice perhaps thawing slightly. “Kihyun tends to exaggerate but thank you for the compliment.” He looked up at his airship fondly. “She may not be the prettiest but she’s a good ship. Looks aren’t everything.”

 

“No, they aren’t,” Hoseok agreed with a smile. “They say that true beauty lies within, in actions and deeds. I firmly believe that.”

 

Hyunwoo studied the other man curiously. There was something about this Hoseok - and he realized he hadn’t even asked for his surname, nor had the assistant offered it. Not that it mattered of course - Hoseok would be here for the journey to New Seoul - for some conference on automatons or some such thing that Kihyun had rambled on about for hours - and then Hyunwoo would likely never see him again. 

 

“Ah, let’s get you aboard the ship. I can show you where to store your things.” He looked for a trunk, brow furrowing as he realized that Hoseok only carried a satchel. Noticing the other’s look, the blonde man chuckled. “This is all I have with me, Captain. Didn’t Dr Yoo tell you I travel light?”

 

“He didn’t tell me anything about you other than your name and that you needed to get to New Seoul.”

 

Hoseok’s jaw dropped. “You mean he didn’t tell you that I’m a….” and with that he shook his head, smile returning. “Nevermind. It isn’t important. “

 

“What were you going to say?” Hyunwoo asked curiously, only to be interrupted but a frantic call of “Captain!” in a very familiar voice.

 

Hyunwoo turned calmly, holding back a sigh as his ship’s surgeon and cook (it was a small airship after all) approached, a distinct look of irritation crossing his features. It was usually one of two things that put Chae Hyungwon in such a mood…

 

“Was it Jooheon or Changkyun this time?”

 

Lee Jooheon came from a background as modest as the Captain’s own, raising himself from the gutters through sheer ingenuity, creativity, and a dash of Lady Luck’s good graces. That and Hyungwon’s ability to set a myriad of broken bones and suture a cut here and there.

 

The surgeon was not amused.

 

Hyungwon didn’t have the same physical grievances against Lim Changkyun. No, the navigator didn’t get into the physical troubles his engineering counterpart did but was instead the mastermind behind Jooheon’s <i>adventures</i>, much to the doctor’s chagrin. However, the younger man’s innocent looks let him get away with more, fooling shopkeep and bartender alike.

 

No one fooled Chae Hyungwon.

 

“Does it even matter?” Hyungwon muttered in exasperation. “However, if you are keeping tally the baby decided he would help in my office. So far I have 3 broken flasks, 2 ruined elixirs, and a set of bandages that are now better used to mop up the floor. I still think getting an automaton would be more efficient, not to mention less ulcer-inducing for me.”

 

At the mention of the word ‘automaton’ Hyunwoo stiffened, unconsciously looking down at his brass arm, the joints of his hand flexing as he made a fist. So humanlike and yet _unreal_.

 

The memory of a past that changed his future forever.

 

“No,” he said bluntly. “That will not be necessary. I will make sure your items are replaced. That is final,” he added as he saw Hyungwon’s mouth open in protest.

 

The air grew cooler around the two as they stared at each other, only to be interrupted by a quiet voice.

 

“Excuse me, Captain?” Hoseok spoke up. “If this is your ship’s surgeon and he needs assistance I would be pleased to help him. I am around Dr Yoo’s lab enough that I am quite familiar with what it contains….and I am very, very careful. It’s the least I could do for your kindness.”

 

Hyunwoo was about to tell the passenger that it wouldn’t be needed when he saw the determination in Hoseok’s eyes. “If it is alright with Dr Chae then I have no protest. Hyungwon, Hoseok here is Kihyun’s assistant and our guest on the way to New Seoul. This gives you a chance to avoid the two idiots at least for a short time…”

 

“I’ll take it,” Hyungwon blurted out, reaching out to shake Hoseok’s hand. He paused for a moment as he met Hoseok’s eyes, then looked over at Hyunwoo curiously before his face resumed its usual lazy expression. “In fact, I could use some help fixing up this mess and making sure my stores are intact. Are you free now, Hoseok?”

 

Hoseok looked over at the Captain. Hyunwoo gave him a smile and a wave of his hand. “Go on...I need to make sure my girl is ready for the trip,” he replied, giving the ship a fond caress. “We will talk later.”

 

It wasn’t until Hyungwon had led Hoseok to his office that he turned to the passenger, leaning back against his desk and crossing his arms in front of his chest. 

 

“So, Hoseok…..when are you going to tell the Captain?”

 

The blonde man looked up at Hyungwon innocently, yet not quite meeting his assessing gaze. “Tell him what? I don’t know what you mean.”

 

The surgeon rolled his eyes. “Cut the crap…..Changkyun does the innocent look better than you. You know exactly what I mean. Kihyun wouldn’t train idiots….”

 

He reached over and tapped Hoseok on the temple.

 

“He wouldn’t _create_   them either.”

  
  
  



End file.
